Expelled MP finds place next to Sachin during oath-taking

New Delhi, Jun 4: Even as Sachin Tendulkar took oath as a member of the Rajya Sabha, a former MP who was expelled in the cash-for-query scam was conspicuous by his presence during the ceremony.

Pradeep Gandhi, one of the 11 MPs expelled from Parliament after being found guilty in the cash-for-query scam in 2005, was seen standing next to Sachin after his swearing-in inside Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari's chamber and was prominently seen during the photo-op later.

Gandhi was a former BJP MP from Rajnandgaon constituency in Chhattisgarh and was a member of the 14th Lok Sabha of India. He was expelled from Parliament, after a Special Committee of the Lok Sabha in December, 2005, found him guilty of contempt of the House and following a motion called for the expulsion of all 11 MPs caught in the sting operation.

Sources in the Chairman's office said any MP or former MP can have access to the Chairman's Chamber. Sources added that Gandhi had come of his own and was not invited to the swearing-in. Sachin was accompanied by his wife Anjali during his swearing-in and other prominent persons present included Ministers of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Shukla and Harish Rawat and MoS in PMO V Narayanasamy, besides an SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav.